BACOLOD – A 37-player strong foreign contingent, including three Thais, hopes to squeeze its way through a slew of local aces and the hazard-laden, tree-lined course here in pursuit of a championship in the ICTSI Negros Occidental Classic, which gets under way tomorrow (Wednesday, June 19) at the Negros Occidental Golf and Country Club.

Kammalas Namuangruk and Tawan Phongphun, two of the top foreign qualifiers in the recent Philippine Golf Tour Q-School, finally get the chance to slug it out with the PGT campaigners after missing the first two legs of the four-stage Visayan swing of the circuit with the former out to better his strong third place effort in PGT Asia leg in Luisita last April.

Aussie Fidel Concepcion also tries to ride the crest of his fifth place finish in last week’s Bacolod stop of the tour put up by ICTSI together with Spain’s Marcos Pastor, who is raring to atone for his final round struggle after sharing the Bacolod Challenge lead in the middle rounds.

Pastor is particularly thrilled over tackling the tight par-72 Marapara layout he described as good but which requires a lot of strategies to produce good scores in all four days especially if the winds come into play.

“The course is in great shape and well taken care of,” said Pastor. “But golf is golf until you finish the last hole. If you can get a good game, it’s easy to hit birdies. But to do it in four days, one has to stay focused, straight and play more strategic.”

That should also be the scheme of the rest of the foreign bidders in the P3 million tournament organized by Pilipinas Golf Tournaments, Inc., including seven invitees in Aussies Jack Sullivan, Tarik Can and David Gleeson, also a former PGT Asia leg titlist, Mateo Gomez and Sebastian Lopez of Colombia, Swede Sebastian Hansson and George Twyman of England.

All will also be practically training their sights on one local player – defending champion Juvic Pagunsan, who has been installed as the player to beat following his emphatic seven-stroke romp at the Bacolod Golf Challenge in Murcia last weekend.

Meanwhile, Pagunsan and Pastor banner a select roster of pros teaming up with guests and officials of the event’s chief backers, including ICTSI, Custom Clubmakers, Meralco, Champion, Summit Mineral Water, K&G Golf Apparel, BDO, Sharp, KZG, PLDT and M.Y. Shokai Technology, Inc., in today’s (Tuesday) pro-am tournament.
But a host of other local talents are also primed up for the event which offers a whopping P650,000 purse to the winner with former champions Zanieboy Gialon and Tony Lascuña and young Ira Alido upbeat of their respective chances to stop Pagunsan and the emerge on top on Saturday.

“I never finished no lower than fifth here, making NOGCC one of my favorite courses,” said Gialon, who won here in 2012 when he nipped Lascuña in a playoff. He actually re-familiarized himself with the course after missing the cut in Murcia, hinting at a winning 15-under card.

“I like my chances here. My ball striking is quite good although I still need to polish my (putting stroke),” said Lascuña, who won here in 2014 and is coming off a ninth-place effort in Murcia.

“I’ll try my best to play good the way I played last week,” said Alido, who put himself in contention in all four days in Murcia before finishing tied for third.

Frankie Miñoza, who outlasted young Miguel Tabuena in a record five-hole playoff here in 2016, is also in the fold along with Clyde Mondilla, Jay Bayron, Rufino Bayron, Jhonnel Ababa, Jerson Balasabas, Albin Engino, Keanu Jahns, James Ryan Lam, Reymon Jaraula, Mhark Fernando and local hero Robert Pactolerin.